Twenty-two species: Turkey eastward through the Caucasus to the Himalayas and E Siberia, also on a few mountains in Africa; five species in China.

Colpodium species usually occur on high mountains. They often resemble Poa morphologically, but can be distinguished by the thinner lemmas with veinless tips and smooth palea keels. Species with long glumes, a single floret, and 3-veined lemmas are not easily recognizable as members of tribe Poeae.